Checking It Out
by badly-knitted
Summary: Ryo, Dee, and the rest of the SCU look into a tip-off they've received on a current case. Set after the manga.


**Title:** Checking It Out

**Author:** badly-knitted

**Characters:** Dee, Ryo, JJ, Ted, Drake, Marty, OCs.

**Rating:** PG

**Setting:** After the manga.

**Summary:** Ryo, Dee, and the rest of the SCU look into a tip-off they've received on a current case.

**Written For:** The tw100 prompt 'Lurk'.

**Word Count:** 1062

**Disclaimer:** I don't own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.

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This isn't the best part of town, you never know who might be lurking in a doorway or one of the narrow alleys between buildings. Drug dealers, addicts, hookers, pimps, muggers, winos, and the homeless; all frequent the area, but none of them are of any interest to the police, not tonight.

Other nights, the boys and girls of the vice squad might have been down here carrying out a routine sweep, cleaning up the streets even though they knew most of the folks they rounded up would be right back where they'd been found within a few hours. Many of them had nowhere else to go.

On this occasion, however, the target is an armed gang rumored to be holed up in one of the shabby tenements in this rundown section of the Bronx. That is, if the anonymous tip received by the Serious Crimes Unit is to be believed. Genuine or not, the only way to find out is by going there and taking a look. Right now, slim though it is, it's the only lead they've got.

None of the squad are taking any chances; the gang are already responsible for the deaths of two civilians and the hospitalisation of five more, two of whom are in critical condition in the ICU. For that reason, the cops are all wearing their vests and creeping through the shadows with their weapons drawn, taking up positions to cover all entrances to the building.

It's late, well after midnight, and with any luck the gang will be sleeping, or drunk, or at the very least not expecting the cops to come knocking on their door. Not that there's going to be much knocking involved; they have a search warrant, it's tucked safely inside Ryo's vest just in case anyone asks to see it.

Dee takes the lead, carefully pushing open the outer door and slipping like a shadow into the building's foyer, Ryo and the rest of the squad following just as quietly. There's no elevator and only one staircase; JJ is stationed on the roof of a neighbouring building from which he has an unobstructed view of the tenement's sole fire escape, and there are officers at both ends of the alley it leads down to; if anyone tries to get out that way they'll find themselves out of luck.

Up the stairs, keeping close to the wall and treading cautiously to avoid making any unnecessary noise; the apartment they want is supposedly on the third of the building's four floors but they check the floors below on their way up, just to be sure no one will come at them from behind. It could happen. All they find are rats and cockroaches, and an immigrant family grateful to have a roof of any kind over their heads. Unfortunately for them, they won't have it for long; a sign out front says the whole block is condemned, waiting to be scheduled for demolition. Ryo wonders briefly what will be built in its place. More people are going to be made homeless if these old building keep being torn down and replaced with new and expensive apartment blocks.

That isn't what he should be focusing on right now though; he has a job to do, and he creeps up to the third floor, keeping close behind Dee, but not so close as to get in his partner's way. It's as dim and dank up there as everywhere else in the building, the hallway lit by a single flickering light bulb. The apartment they want is the first on the left; Dee goes straight past and takes up position against the wall at the far side of the door while Ryo mirrors him on his side. Ted steps past him, the three of them exchange glances and Dee holds up three fingers, two, one…

Slamming his foot into the rickety door just below the lock, Ted kicks it in and leaps out of the way, just in case anyone within might open fire. When no one does, the three detectives dart through the opening and spread out, Drake and Marty following them in, using their flashlights to dazzle the four men who are scrabbling to their feet, bleary-eyed, desperately trying to find their weapons among the empty bottles, cans, and takeout cartons that litter both the floor and the dirty mattresses the men have been lying on. As had been hoped, they've been caught napping.

"Shit!" one of them exclaims, trying to shield his eyes. "It's the cops!"

"You're all under arrest. Hands behind your heads and get on your knees," Dee snaps out.

Three of the men obey, but the fourth gang member grabs for his weapon, only to freeze as the barrel of Ryo's gun touches the back of his head. "Don't even think about it."

Drake and Ted are over by the window, hauling the fifth man back into the apartment. He'd been trying to make a break for the fire escape but had gotten his hoodie caught on the window latch; that's a bit of luck for the cops as it saves anyone having to chase after him. A quick glance into the apartment's other room reveals the loot from the gang's crime spree; there's no doubt these are the men responsible for the spate of violent robberies the detectives have been investigating. Whoever phoned in the tip was spot on.

A few minutes later, hands cuffed behind them, the five men are being marched down the stairs to the waiting squad cars. Four uniforms will remain behind until the crime scene people can get here and go through the apartment collecting evidence, but for the moment all that's left for the detectives of the SCU is to take their prisoners back to the precinct and book them. Questioning them can wait until their weapons have been test fired and the bullets compared against the ones taken from the gang's victims. There's no doubt in Ryo's mind that they'll match.

He smiles in satisfaction. It's been a good night's work; criminals captured, and nobody injured in the process, one for the win column. Successes like this are why they do what they do. Tomorrow there'll no doubt be more violent crimes to investigate, but tonight they can bask in the glow of a job well done. They deserve it.

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The End


End file.
